6 arguments for IT alignment

The theme of business / IT alignment is regular at our table, and when we begin to arise when a group once a sense of resentment.If we talk about business / IT alignment writing, we have had quickly about IT alignment to business: IT must adapt to the business.That’s not fair, is it?You need two people to tango, as they say in the States – and so it is.It would be nice if the twisted business also once did his best to approach IT.

Yet we have some reasons to continue to approach the problem as primarily an IT issue.My first and main reason I like to illustrate with a quote from George Bernard Shaw.

I believe that your happiness is that we live largely in their own hands and much further forward than we ourselves dare to admit.If you want things to change in life, then you are the right person to that motion.Even if you’re right and blame the miscommunication between business and IT in your organization fully to the business, then you have much more to gain from an active attitude than with a passive-aggressive.Moreover, the discussion is not about blame – it is about the solution.

The second reason is that the business itself is looking for a solution – and with the IT department but little to do.Call it shadow IT, call the consumerization of BYOD, call it outsourcing or cloud computing: in most of the major new IT developments of today are components that the business enabling IT to use without having to ask the own IT department.

See?What setters, since in the business.And that brings me to reason three: why does the business that?Because it can.Whether we like it or not, the business is not about IT.Even in the IT industry is running the business to business, and has its own internal IT department at best an enabler.And that is in the best cases, because in many organizations IT by business employees primarily perceived as a ‘inhibiter.Wrongly of course: it is bizarre that IT is judged on the couple of hours in a year that the PCs do not work and the network is not available – but that’s obvious relations: if you must, do the business it if necessary without us – and vice versa is really a lot harder to imagine.

But it also touches on why four, and that is that in many cases, IT is indeed the problem.Thinking in IT terms is not easy – it’s serious sport.It requires people with a special talent for digital systems to fathom.It goes too far simply to say that these same people do not excel in social contacts – but it is certainly true that the ruthless rationality and logic of IT systems is difficult to relate to the emotions of the real life.Soft skills have no practical application in the IT field, while the world outside IT correct subtleties of hanging together.From this world can be quite tricky the often highly specialized way of thinking of IT professionals to follow.IT people realize this too little, partly perhaps because they know the day surrounded by peers – but there are many people in this world (and not the least – your CEO may very well be one of his) that hardly in a position at an IT way to think.

IT is a specialist – it is not ‘other reality’, but a greatly enlarged part of the reality in which you happen to excel.That comes responsibility – and that is why five.An IT professional is like a brain surgeon: your knowledge of your field goes much deeper than that of your customer – and yet you will see him or her in understandable Dutch to explain what your diagnosis is, what opportunities you see, what its consequences are, and what treatment you propose.Of course it would be nice if the patient is slightly recessed in the matter, so you do not anything to Jip and Janneke level need to reduce – but in all honesty is that all rarely the case.See reason two: superficial knowledge of IT is now in most people present.And it remains true insight reserved for specialists – often thanks to many years of study and experience.That has been an investment that you might have done unnoticed, but others can not simply just imitate – therefore you are the expert, and so they come to you for advice.Calling them self but harder to do their best is not a good basis for a healthy cooperation.

And that brings me to the sixth and final reason why it is prudent business / IT alignment as a problem that must be solved from IT: there are serious career opportunities where you can do personally to your advantage.There is a huge need for people who are able to translate between business and IT to make.As I showed you above, the specialization of IT such that it is almost impossible for ordinary mortals is similar insight, while it is increasingly difficult for IT professionals on an analog, gentle way to communicate.Yet business and IT together condemned.For people who are able to bring the two together (from business or IT), is a wonderful career in the offing – and why would you not seize that opportunity?